Luka Doncic seals dramatic overtime victory for Los Angeles Lakers
Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves delivered sensational late-game heroics to secure a thrilling 127-125 overtime victory for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.
Reaves forced the extra period with a perfectly executed intentional free-throw miss and put-back with just 1.9 seconds remaining in regulation.
Doncic then sealed the dramatic win with an 18-foot step-back jumper with a mere half-second left in overtime.
The Slovenian star capped off his exceptional performance by blocking Tim Hardaway Jr’s three-point attempt at the buzzer.
Reaves executes flawless intentional miss
Trailing by two points in the dying moments of the fourth quarter, Reaves purposely fired his crucial free throw flat against the front of the rim.
With Deandre Ayton successfully boxing out three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, the 26-year-old guard was able to collect his own rebound and sink a nine-foot floater.
Reaves finished as the highest scorer for the hosts with 32 points, marking his third consecutive game surpassing the 30-point threshold.
“I wasn’t going to give the ball an opportunity to go in,” Reaves explained. “I don’t think my ball ever got over 10 feet.”
Doncic shines alongside veteran James
The sensational climax set the stage for Doncic to register his eighth triple-double of the campaign.
The former Dallas Mavericks talisman recorded 30 points, 13 assists, and 11 rebounds across the tightly contested affair.
It marks his first game-winning shot for his new franchise, following an astonishing 50-point performance in his previous outing.
“That execution was perfection,” Doncic noted regarding his team-mate’s game-tying play. “Went to my left hand, to my left step-back… I just trust the shot.”
LeBron James was quick to praise his new backcourt partner, labelling the 27-year-old a generational talent.
Unprecedented hustle from James
The dramatic sequence was only made possible by an exceptional hustle play from the 39-year-old James in the final minute of regulation.
The four-time NBA champion executed a full-body dive onto the floor to deny Christian Braun an offensive rebound, forcing a crucial jump ball against Jamal Murray.
“In 23 years of watching you play in the NBA, the three years I watched you play in high school, I never saw you make a full-out extension dive like that,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick told James.
This hard-fought victory against a formidable Western Conference rival serves as a major statement of intent for Redick’s rejuvenated squad.